


Share my Life (Take me for What I Am)

by Laisaxrem



Series: This is Us (english version) [27]
Category: Naruto
Genre: F/M, Gen, Haruno Sakura-centric, One Shot Collection, Sakura Month 2021, they are all about the same AU
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-04
Updated: 2021-03-15
Packaged: 2021-03-17 08:49:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 7,099
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29839032
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Laisaxrem/pseuds/Laisaxrem
Summary: My contribution to Sakura Month from Haruno Sakura Server on Tumblr. I found out yesterday and was immediately flooded with ideas and just couldn't help it. The fics are all very short for this reason as well. You will find a short summary and tags for each chapter.
Relationships: Haruno Sakura & Hatake Aki (OC), Haruno Sakura & Hatake Megumi (OC), Haruno Sakura & Pakkun, Haruno Sakura & Uzumaki Naruko, Haruno Sakura/Hatake Kakashi
Series: This is Us (english version) [27]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1976788
Comments: 8
Kudos: 23





	1. The Fight is Done, the War is Won

**Author's Note:**

  * A translation of [Share my Life (Take me for What I Am)](https://archiveofourown.org/works/29838822) by [Laisaxrem](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Laisaxrem/pseuds/Laisaxrem). 



> TITLE: I Have Nothing - Whitney Houston

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sakura wants to arrange a special date with Kakashi and needs some more information.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DATE: Saturday, 14th January 1683  
> TITLE: This Is War - Thirty Seconds to Mars
> 
> Relationships: Haruno Sakura / Hatake Kakashi, Haruno Sakura & Pakkun  
> Characters: Haruno Sakura, Pakkun, Hatake Kakashi (mentioned)  
> Additional Tags: Sakura Month 2021. Day 1: “Tell me everything”
> 
> Freely inspired by the magnificent art of [oliveroot](https://oliveroot.tumblr.com/post/644486064503996416/sakura-month-31-tell-me-everything-where).

After Kakashi’s efforts to arrange their first dates, Sakura had decided that now she wanted to take the helm of the ship and surprise him with something nice, something he loved to do. Over the years she had learned a lot about Kakashi but she wanted to make sure she was using all of her ammo.

So she had decided she needed help. And who better than Pakkun, who had known him for thirty years? (She had considered asking Gai-san for a hand, and in fact had even gone to his house that afternoon, but when she asked him the man had burst into tears and started a long dissertation on how Love was a Wonderful thing, about how lucky his Rival was to have found a Person like her, about how the Spring of Youth never ended, etc. After more than half an hour she still hadn’t gotten anything useful out of him therefore she had respectfully left the apartment).

The idea of asking Pakkun had come soon after, as she was walking through the streets of Konoha gathering her ideas. But Pakkun was a stubborn ninken and Sakura knew she would have to give him something in return to get his help. So she had rushed to the market and returned home with a bag full of stuff and she had immediately got to work.

In the end, she was fairly satisfied, she had put everything in an airtight container and she had flung herself to Kakashi’s house: it was starting to be late and she did not want to risk the man returning home just as she was talking to Pakkun.

Sakura entered without difficulty because Kakashi had left her a spare key (and, more importantly, the sequence of seals to disable the security barrier) and found Pakkun dozing on the sofa in the living room. The ninken barely opened one eye and waved at her by raising a paw.

She knelt in front of him and reached out to scratch his head.

«What is it, little girl?» he asked after a while, her dark eyes staring at her.

«I need your help», Sakura admitted and explained exactly what she needed.

Pakkun snorted and rested his head on the sofa cushion again, letting his lids close slowly.

«This is none of my business», he dismissed her with a yawn. «If you want to know anything about the Boss you have to ask him yourself».

Sakura sighed. Just as she feared. And that’s why she had her secret weapon with her.

«What if I told you…» she began softly as she gently pulled the container out of the bag and placed it on the tatami, «… that I have brought a reward?»

At those words the ninken’s ears moved and he opened his eyes again, which immediately went to rest on the yellow plastic container. Sakura could read the curiosity and she thought that maybe she would make it.

«Do you think you can buy me, little girl?»

Her answer that immediately popped up on her lips was “ _absolutely yes_ ” but she wisely managed to stop and, instead of responding with words, she opened the container. Immediately a scent of meat was released around them and Sakura clearly saw the pug begin to salivate. Sakura 1, Pakkun 0.

«Is that beef and salmon?» the ninken asked, his nose moving as he deeply inhaled the smell.

She nodded and gave him a moment longer to evaluate what he was facing, then she asked: «So, do we have a deal?»

Sakura waited anxiously as Pakkun alternately stared at her and the container and knew she had won before the ninken even nodded gravely.

«Come on, then, tell me everything».


	2. There’s Somethin’ Wrong Here

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sakura was enjoying an afternoon of rest, curled up on Kakashi's sofa reading a book, when a message from her boyfriend roused her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DATE: Thursday, 30th November 1683  
> TITLE: It's too Late - Carole King
> 
> Relationships: Haruno Sakura / Hatake Kakashi  
> Characters: Haruno Sakura, Hatake Kakashi  
> Additional Tags: Sakura Month 2021. Day 2: Poison, tea time

Sakura was quietly reading one of her favourite novels, curled up on Kakashi’s sofa and with a cup of chocolate in her lap, when her cell phone buzzed. The woman sighed.

She hated that thing and she still didn’t know how Kakashi and Tenzō-san had managed to get them all to get one a few years ago. Okay, she had to admit that the extended Team 7 group chat was fun and it was very useful to be able to keep in constant contact with everyone (at least as long as they were inside the Village: apparently the barrier that protected Konoha also interfered with the signal) and of course there was the bonus of being able to contact Kakashi quickly, especially when one of the two found themselves having to work overtime in the hospital or office.

But Sakura didn’t quite like it and that’s why she always kept the Thing with the vibration on: so she could pretend not to see the memes that Naruto sent her at 11 in the evening.

She sighed and took her mobile phone and pressed the release button to see the preview making a pact with herself: if it was important she would have answered, otherwise she would have simply ignored the annoyance and resumed reading.

The sender was Kakashi and he had sent a sticker. What the…

Sakura hurried to unlock the screen and access the chat. The sticker was that of a crying cat. Below was a cloud with three moving dots, a sign that Kakashi was still writing. Sakura waited a moment but seeing that no messages were coming from him, she ran her fingers quickly across the screen.

 **16:21 You** : What’s going on? Why are you writing to me?

Sakura waited, her eyes darting to the ceiling. What if…

Finally the Thing vibrated again and Sakura quickly read the message just arrived.

 **16:22 HoTkage** 🔥: I really need a cup of tea 🍵

Sakura raised an eyebrow. What the hell…

 **16:22 You** : Kakashi, you’re upstairs. Get your ass up and come get it ready

 **16:23 HoTkage** 🔥: But I’m in full creative phase

Below was another sticker with a cat with a sad expression.

Sakura closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

She had two options: ignore her boyfriend’s request and continue reading (but in that case the cell phone would keep vibrating because Kakashi could be exhausting if he wanted to), or she could go to the kitchen and make tea. Sakura took a moment to consider the two possibilities but when she felt the Thing vibrate for the third time she sighed and put the book aside.

Damn.

Taking the damn thing with her, Sakura went into the kitchen and turned on the kettle as she take the cup and a bag of Kakashi’s favourite green tea. While she waited for the water to boil, she took the Thing and opened the chat again where about fifteen messages awaited her, almost all stickers of sad animals interspersed with “ _pleeeease_ ”. The three dots were still there, a sign that Kakashi was still writing and Sakura hurried to press on the screen and send him an answer.

 **16:29 You** : Stop immediately or I’ll drink this tea

Instantly the dots stopped… and then resumed. A few seconds later, just as the kettle was turning off to signal that the water had reached the right temperature, a new message arrived.

 **16:30 HoTkage** 🔥: I love you, Sakura-chan

 **16:30 You** : I said shut up

 **16:30 HoTkage** 🔥: 😘💋

Okay, it was clear that Kakashi was acting like a cheeky brat, so Sakura decided it was time for her to punish him… and she knew exactly how to do it.

Suddenly her lips tightened into a smile and Sakura _knew_ it was one of those smiles you see in the face of killer maniacs in movies. Oh, well, she just had to be able to hide it from Kakashi. After the four minutes of brewing, Sakura removed the teabag, took the hot cup and went upstairs.

Kakashi was in the second room on the right, the one facing the bedroom. He was sitting at the slightly ramshackle table that served as a desk, a quantity of papers scattered in front of him. When he heard her pull the fusuma aside he quickly gathered most of the papers and placed them in a corner, under a book, and at the same time turned the one he was writing on face down. Sakura raised an eyebrow but said nothing. He greeted her with a smile on his beautiful face, left completely visible by the lack of his mask. Shit. He _knew_ what that smile did to her. Oh, but he would have paid dearly, oh yeah.

After carefully placing the cup on the table, making sure it was well away from the papers, Sakura started to walk away but Kakashi grabbed her wrist and dragged her to sit astride his lap.

«Thank you», he whispered, blowing a light kiss on the tip of her nose as she struggled to keep an annoyed expression.

«It’s the first and last time», she warned him, but with each caress of his fingers and each light kiss her resolve was a little scratched. Fortunately, that other thing was ready. «What are you working on?» she asked as she strained her neck to peek over his shoulder.

«Top secret Hokage’s things», he said immediately as he swivelled his chair just enough to prevent her from looking.

Sakura raised an eyebrow but said nothing. It was evident that Kakashi was working on another _Icha Icha_ but it was always fun to see him trudging to hide manuscripts and notes around the house so she wouldn’t tell him anything.

«You know, I was reading when you wrote me», she added, trying to make him feel guilty.

But Kakashi chuckled a little and gave her another light kiss.

Oh yeah, Sakura _didn’t regret_ her little trick _at all_. Maybe it would teach him something… or at least she would have fun.

With a snort she patted him on the shoulder and stood up.

«Drink the tea while it’s hot and then go back to your “very important and very secret” Hokage’s chores», she said, her voice a little grumbling. «I’m going back to my novel. And know that I will not read any more of your messages until I am finished».

«Thank you, I love you», he replied with a bright smile before bringing the cup to his lips… and stopping instantly. «Sakura-chan, the tea smells different», he muttered, and Sakura paused at the door as she struggled to hold back a laugh.

« Oh yeah?»

«It smells like…» Kakashi began softly as he sniffed the cup again and a wrinkle formed between his silver eyebrows. «Bitter almonds».

«Is that so?»

«Wait…» Kakashi was staring at her now, his eyes wide. «Sakura, are you trying to poison me?!»

The woman didn’t answer but she laughed, walking away down the hall.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No, Sakura didn't poison him. She just added an almond tea-bag to the green tea-bag. No cyanide for Kakashi... this time.


	3. Day 3: TBC

This chapter is not ready, yet, but since I wanted to catch up with the days I was missing and then publish the fics daily, I decided that I will come back to it later.


	4. You could Be my New Prescription

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DATE: Sunday, 6th September 1686  
> TITLE: Everybody Talks - Neon Trees
> 
> Relationships: Haruno Sakura / Hatake Kakashi  
> Characters:Haruno Sakura, Hatake Kakashi  
> Additional Tags: Sakura Month 2021. Day 4: Scent, sleeping
> 
> Sequel of [Kiss Kiss (Fall in Love) ch 5: When the Time Comes, Baby don’t Run (Just Kiss me Slowly)](https://archiveofourown.org/works/29400681/chapters/72785394#workskin)

«Sakura…»

Kakashi’s voice roused her from her sleep.

They were in their bed and Sakura was lying on her side, a muscular, warm arm surrounding her waist, fingers gently stroking her skin. She absent-mindedly realized the ninkens were gone but she was too tired to really care.

That month without Kakashi had weighed on her more than she would ever admit and sleeping in his arms was like really resting for the first time and she didn’t want to let go of that heat.

«Mmm…» she moaned, her eyes shut to keep out as much sunlight as possible as she turned between the sheets.

As she did so, she found her face just inches from Kakashi’s chest. Sighing with contentment, Sakura squeezed tighter against him, sinking her nose into the hollow of her man’s neck and inhaled deeply, lulling herself into the scent of his skin.

«Hey», he called again with his deep voice and Sakura realized she was fallen asleep again. She vaguely felt him bending his head and kissing her hair and his fingers continuing to trace her skin. «Time to get up», Kakashi urged in a whisper.

«Five more minutes…»

Her husband giggled and in the position she was in Sakura felt the laughter reverberate within her, and it would have been annoying if she hadn’t already been on the verge of falling asleep again.

Kakashi probably realized it was a lost cause because he shifted position and dragged her with him until Sakura was half lying on top of him. And with her face buried in his chest and her senses flooded with his scent, Sakura fell asleep again.


	5. How does she Know you Love her?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sakura goes home and finds dinner ready.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DATE: Friday, 2nd April 1687  
> TITLE: That’s How you Know - Amy Adams
> 
> Relationships: Haruno Sakura / Hatake Kakashi  
> Characters: Haruno Sakura, Hatake Kakashi  
> Additional Tags: Sakura Month 2021. Day 5: Tempura

The house was awash with the scent of food. Sakura paused for a moment in the doorway as she sniffed the air like a hunting dog. Her stomach began to growl as she made her way down the hall to the kitchen where Kakashi was at the stove, a flowered apron protecting his shirt from splashes (and Sakura had to push the memory of her husband with only that on out of her mind).

Probably sensing her presence, Kakashi lowered the heat under a saucepan of oil that was sizzling, put down the chopsticks he was using and went to meet her just as she did the same. They met in front of the peninsula and the man placed his hands on her hips while she encircled his shoulders with her arms rising on her toes to kiss him lightly on the lips.

«Tadaima».

«Okaeri», Kakashi greeted her with a smile and a light caress on her face before returning to the stove while Sakura sat on one of the stools. «Dinner is almost ready».

«The smell is wonderful», she assured. Then her eyes fell to the hot oil pot Kakashi was putting food into. «But is that tempura?»

He moaned in agreement and reached out to grab a bowl and some paper towels from one of the cabinets.

«I made zucchini, eggplants and carrots. I thought it was a good side dish».

«But you don’t like tempura», Sakura pointed out

«You like it though, right? » Kakashi asked with a smile. «But you will have to tell me if it turned out well or not… I have no intention of tasting it».

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think cooking for someone is a wonderful gesture of love and cooking something you know you won't eat because you know the other person likes that thing... well, I melt at the thought.  
> In one of the databooks it was said that Kakashi doesn't like fried foods, especially tempura. And well, here it is.


	6. It’s a Lonely Lonely Loney Place for me Baby

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DATE: Sunday, 3rd September 1683  
> TITLE: Catch me While I’m Sleeping - Pink
> 
> Relationships: Haruno Sakura / Hatake Kakashi, Hatake Kakashi & Hatake Sakumo  
> Characters: Haruno Sakura, Hatake Kakashi, Hatake Sakumo (mentioned)  
> Additional Tags: Sakura Month 2021. Day 6: “Want some company?”, a little bit of angst

Sakura had stopped by the office to visit Kakashi for lunch and found the room empty. When asked, Shikamaru shrugged and muttered something that sounded like “ _he’s at his father’s_ ” without even looking up from the scroll he was working on. For a moment the woman was confused, then something in her mind clicked and she headed for the cemetery.

Kakashi was there, on the edge of the field, sitting in front of a tombstone a little darker than the others. He had an empty glass of sake in his hand while the bottle and a second full glass were placed on the shelf in front of the tombstone.

«Hey», she whispered to announce her presence even knowing that Kakashi had sensed her coming. «Want some company? »

He didn’t answer in words but looked up and turned his dark eyes to hers. And that was more than enough permission for Sakura to sit next to him. Kakashi immediately took her hand and intertwined his fingers with hers.

They remained silent for what seemed an infinite time to let themselves be caressed by the warm sun of early September.

«My father would have turned sixty-five today», he said suddenly. «I would have liked to introduce him to you».

«Do you think he would have liked me?» she asked, resting her head on his shoulder.

«He would have loved you. And I would have been jealous», Kakashi asserted, sadness and laughter creating a strange mixture in his voice. «I would have taken you to dinner in our family home every week because he loved to cook, especially if there were guests», he continued, his fingers that never stopped squeezing and caressing hers. «He would have prepared the anmitsu for you».

«You would have been right to be jealous, then», Sakura whispered back.

«Exactly. It would have been nice, right?»

«Yup».

Then silence fell between them and Sakura didn’t feel like breaking it.

Of course, she had known for years the story of Hatake Sakumo, Konoha’s White Fang. When Kakashi was assigned as their jōnin-sensei, Sakura had spent a few afternoons in the archives looking for information, and when she later had become Tsunade’s apprentice she had discovered much more. But it was rare for Kakashi to talk about his parents or any of the people he had lost over the years. Sakura had never pushed him to do it, neither in the years of their friendship nor in the few months since their relationship had begun, and she certainly had no intention of starting now.

So she stood there, sitting on the ground in silence, accepting the physical contact her man seemed to yearn for now and thinking about how many things could have been different.

«Usually Gai and I spend the evening together, for my father’s birthday and for his father’s birthday too», Kakashi said suddenly and Sakura almost jumped.

«I see».

And it was true. Sakura perfectly understood the need to cling to friends when your mind was full of bad memories. She too had had her fair share of drunken evenings with Ino and the others in recent years, especially early after the War ended.

«But…» Kakashi began, hesitant, and Sakura looked at him curiously. «Do you want to come to my home this evening?»

She smiled and rested her head against his shoulder again.

«For as long as you like».

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This Sakura Month is practically becoming a KakaSaku Month. Yes I know. But I promise there are more stories with other characters later on.


	7. You Got to Show him you Need him

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sakura has a gift for Kakashi.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guess what? Yesterday I forgot to finish the story, so today I'm catching up.  
> Anyway, yet another KakaSaku story, but the next three (and in part even the fourth) will not be, I promise.
> 
> DATE: Friday, 18th April 1685  
> TITLE: That’s How you Know - Amy Adams
> 
> Relationships: Haruno Sakura / Hatake Kakashi  
> Characters: Haruno Sakura, Hatake Kakashi, Minor Characters (mentioned)  
> Additional Tags: Sakura Month 2021. Day 7: Winter Tea, gift, ninja dorks, sexual innuendo

Sakura had come home early that afternoon. She had had some dizziness and Tsunade-shishō had scolded her for coming to work too soon after that bad flu she had taken. So she had practically thrown her out of the hospital by giving her the entire weekend off. She had grumbled but in reality she did not mind at all: it had been some time that she had needed to add some shirts to her wardrobe and she would also take the opportunity to look for a dress for Konohamaru and Moegi’s wedding.

She had therefore spent a few hours in the shopping streets of Konoha with Ino, who was also busy with her wedding preparations, and then returned home when the sky began to turn indigo, her hands full of bags. She had taken a long relaxing bath and then she had started preparing sushi for that evening but she actually couldn’t wait for Kakashi to come home to show him her purchases… well, _one_ purchase in particular.

When, shortly after eight, the front door opened and Kakashi announced his entrance, Sakura went to meet him and kissed him. As was their custom, they went to sit on the sofa, Kakashi with his head in Sakura’s lap, and told each other about their day, her fingers playing with his hair.

«I bought you something», Sakura finally said, leaning over the edge of the sofa to grab the shopping bag she had hidden there.

«Mmm? What do I owe it to?»

«To the fact that I love you», she replied, bending over slightly to kiss his forehead.

Kakashi smiled and moved his face until their lips met.

It was not a new thing for them to exchange gifts without a specific anniversary. Sometimes it just happened that one of them noticed a book, a scarf or any other object and thought that it was perfect for the other person.

«What is it?»

«Open it and you’ll find out», she encouraged him.

«Mmm», Kakashi murmured as his long, calloused fingers began to torment the edge of the bag. «Is it something funny?»

Sakura smiled and decided to play the game; she nodded and allowed her fingers to weave back into his silver hair, marvelling for the millionth time at how _damn_ soft they were (and without using a conditioner, damn him).

«Is that something we can use together?»

«Mmm, yes?» she answered, pretending to think about it for a while. «But not at the same time».

Finally Sakura saw a twinkle in Kakashi’s eyes and the man sat up composed on the sofa, his fingers starting to torment the paper of the bag a little more seriously. Sakura knew well the marauder expression that had formed on his face: it was the one he usually reserved for the bedroom. She tried to hold back a laugh.

«Is that something you can use in bed?»

Exactly.

«By paying attention, yes. But I recommend using it in the living room or kitchen».

And with those simple words she knew she had painted a certain image, in the mind of her mate, an image that she thought she could see hovering above his head. Trying not to laugh became _extremely_ difficult.

She was sure that if he had continued with the questions she would give in so she prodded his side with a finger and urged him with a: «Come on, open it»; and Kakashi hastened to perform, his eyes shining like a child on Christmas morning.

The paper bag was the first to hit the ground, thrown away like an unbalanced shuriken. Seconds later even the coloured paper slid to the ground in shreds and Sakura fixed her eyes on Kakashi’s face: she didn’t want to miss his expression.

«What –»

Kakashi looked at the mug that lay in his lap with wide eyes, as if trying to match the idea he had created in his head with what he actually had in front of him. After a few seconds he grabbed the mug and studied it before bursting out laughing.

«You tricked me!» he accused her once he regained her composure, even though her lips remained curled in a big smile.

«Me? Not at all», she replied, leaning a little more on his side. «Nothing I’ve said is untrue. Why, Hokage-sama, what did you think it was?»

«I'll explain later», he whispered, giving her a little shiver that ran through her body. «I like the gift a lot, anyway. Thank you».

«It made me think of you».

«Who knows why…» Kakashi retorted, sarcasm permeating every syllable as he lifted the mug.

It was a green similar to the cover of _Icha Icha Tactics_ and was studded with black dog footprints, like ink on a coloured sheet. But what had attracted and convinced her to buy it was the text on the front: “GOOD BOY”.

«That way you’ll stop stealing my favourite cup when you make tea in the morning».

«That will never happen».

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Any reference to "[Are Hotter than Hot (in a lot of Good Ways)](https://archiveofourown.org/works/27101572)" is purely intentional.


	8. Strong as Ten Regular Men, Definitely

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sakura agrees to help Naruto with training to prepare for the Chunin Exam. She will regret it bitterly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DATE: Sunday, 10th May 1680  
> TITLE: Prince Ali - Robin Williams
> 
> Relationships: Haruno Sakura & Uzumaki Naruto  
> Characters: Haruno Sakura, Uzumaki Naruto, Sarutobi Konohamaru, Ise Udon, Karamatsuri Moegi  
> Additional Tags: Sakura Month 2021. Day 8: Stitches, a little bit of blood, stitches, not too visual, Konohamaru is an idiot, Naruto too, they need a lesson.

«Idiot».

«Sakura-chan…»

«You’re an idiot», she added, pressing a little harder on the wound in Naruto’s stomach.

That great, huge, reckless _idiot_.

Sakura was helping Naruto prepare for the Chūnin Exam. Obviously it was just a _pro forma_ : Naruto was already at a level well above that of a normal chūnin, but if he wanted to be promoted to jōnin in order to one day ascend to the throne of Hokage he had to pass the exam first.

Her friend had shown up at her door the day before, asking her if she would like to train with him the next day. She had accepted because she knew it could be difficult to fight without an arm. Okay, Naruto could theoretically use Kurama’s chakra to “create” replacement limbs, but she and Tsunade had asked him not to tap into the power of the Bijū for a while, not now that the prosthetic arm created from Hashirama-sama’s cells was almost ready: they didn’t wanted to risk chakra abuse somehow damaging the tissue and tenketsu of the arm.

So that morning Sakura had gone out in the cool morning and met her friend at one of the training fields. They had started with a little bit of taijutsu (an easy easy point for Sakura) and then moved on to ninjutsu (and Naruto had torn it up profusely) and then ended with genjutsu (another point for Sakura). They had decided to left kenjutsu, an art in which they were both rather lacking, in the afternoon after a good bento lunch she had prepared, and then go home.

Sakura had not considered the intervention of Konohamaru, Moegi and Udon. The three genin would have taken the standard Chūnin Exam in the summer and had asked to be allowed to participate in the last phase of their training. Naruto obviously had agreed with enthusiasm. Bad idea. Konohamaru was a public danger, with a long weapon in hand. He had created two copies to confuse his opponents… mostly confusing himself. Sakura didn’t quite understand how it had happened, but Konohamaru had taken a run to disarm Udon but the boy had closed his eyes and curled up on himself, protecting his head with his arms and letting go of his katana that had fell in the grass. Bad, _bad_ decision. Sakura had seen the exact moment when panic filled Konohamaru’s eyes and jumped between the two, ready to deflect the weapon with a Chakra Scalpel. But at the last second Naruto had placed himself just between herself and the yari and, idiot as he was, he hadn’t _deflected_ the blow but had _taken it_ in his chest.

Sakura had jumped on him instantly, helping him to sit up and preventing him from extracting the jūmonji yari and intervening with her chakra to understand exactly the damage that the T-blade had done to his internal organs.

So she was now kneeling in a training camp surrounded by three kids crying while she took care of that _idiot_ of her best friend.

«I could have _deflected_ the blow easily», she hissed, her worry diminishing to give way to anger. «But no, you have to _get in the way_. As if I hadn’t been stabbed much worse by Madara during the War and couldn’t deal with a stupid yari».

«Sakura-chaaaan! Do not be mean. I wanted to protect you», Naruto whimpered but Sakura refused to give in.

I mean, okay, it was a nice gesture, but it bothered her that after everything they had been through, after what she had done during the War, after she had kept him alive by _massaging his heart directly_ with her hand while they were traveling on a _fucking cloud of sand_ , Naruto still underestimated her abilities. It was time for this to change.

But she also had to take care of the three kids who were shivering and had tears streaked on their cheeks.

«Hey you three, focus, I need a hand», she called, her voice hard, and they finally set their sights on her.

«Naruto-nī…» Konohamaru began softly before she could make her requests. «Naruto-nī… w-will he be o-okay?»

«Perfectly», she assured him. And it was true. The wound was not very serious and by adding her healing chakra to the regenerative abilities typical of the Jinchūrikis Sakura estimated that she could completely heal him in a few minutes. But if she had done it none of them four would have learned anything. So she smiled because she was a woman with a plan now. «Moegi, bring me the black bag I left under that tree».

The girl nodded, wiped her tears and ran to one of the trees at the edge of the training field. Within seconds she was back beside her with _all_ of the bags, including Naruto’s. Oh well, better too zealous than too little.

«Now you two. Konohamaru, get behind Naruto and help him stand straight and still. Udon, you have to take off his shirt, _gently_. You can leave the fishnet on».

The two boys nodded and obeyed faster than she had ever seen them do. Good. Maybe that fright would help them.

«Sakura-san, what do you want to do?» Moegi asked, her voice still a little trembling, her eyes fixed on the bloodstained shirt that Udon had badly thrown on the grass.

«I’ll have to take out the blade and put the stitches on him», she explained as she extracted the needle, thread and disinfectant from her medical kit.

«Stitches?!» Konohamaru shrieked. His face was pale and nauseated and his dark blue eyes looked huge in that pallor.

«You know that I heal fast, right», Naruto tried.

«Yes, but I don’t care. Now you take all the stitches that I will give you».

«But it hurts to put stitches without anaesthetic…»

«Exactly».

«And soon you’ll have to take them off. And it hurts to take them off without anaesthetics…»

«Exactly».

«Sakura-chan, is it really necessary?» he pleaded, looking at her with blue eyes wide open in what undoubtedly wanted to be a tender expression. Sakura didn’t fall for it, not even for a second. “Beaten puppy”, that was how her grandmother once defined it, many years before. It had always had an effect on her, she remembered it clearly… but she wasn’t her grandmother, and Naruto wasn’t a five-year-old girl who wanted an extra mochi.

«Either that or I’ll take you to the hospital and let Tsunade-shishō take care of you», she threatened as she placed the instruments in order to her right and firmly grasped the rod of the yari while with her other hand she infused some healing chakra in Naruto’s abdomen.

He shook his head and paled a little, surely at the idea of having to explain to Tsunade why he had a blade stuck in his stomach.

Without a warning and with a quick flick of the wrist, Sakura pulled out the yari and just as quickly stopped the bleeding with a bit of chakra. Udon let out a cry and walked away from her but Sakura didn’t pay him too much attention as she spread some disinfectant on the open wound (amiably ignoring Naruto’s hiss of pain) and then reached out to grab the needle and thread.

When she pierced the skin with the needle, Konohamaru fainted and Udon threw up in a corner.

Oh, yes, they would _certainly_ have learned something from that accident.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Honestly? The Konohamaru from before the War makes me nervous. There is a filler episode where he has a tantrum because he wants to be sent to the front and also attacks Temari and in the end Moegi slaps him in the face and tells him that he is an idiot, that people will die and he seems happy and wants just show off. Here, exactly. I like what little I've seen of him in Boruto, but the 13yo Konohamaru? I'd slap him two by two until they turn odd. So I decided to give him one more reason to grow up a little.


	9. ‘Cause Girl you’re Amazing Just the Way you Are

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DATE: Thursday, 14th November 1679  
> TITLE: Just the Way you Are - Bruno Mars
> 
> Relationships: Haruno Sakura & Sai  
> Characters: Haruno Sakura, Sai  
> Additional Tags: Sakura Month 2021. Day 9: Chakra

«So you have an unlimited supply of chakra now?» Sai asked, a curious expression on his face.

They were sitting in the shade of a log, sweaty and dirty after their spar, and Sakura had offered to treat his injuries.

The War had ended about a month earlier but the iryō-nins’ work was far from over. Sakura in particular was dealing with Gai-sensei and Naruto, which really absorbed a lot of both physical and emotional energies from her. In fact, although Naruto was healing at prodigious speed (blessed the Bijū chakra), the same could not be said of Gai-sensei and it was frustrating for Sakura not to be able to heal him as she had done for many other shinobis. But after all with those injuries it was truly a miracle that he was still alive, despite the intervention of Naruto and the power borrowed from Rikudō Sennin. She theoretically _knew that_ , sure, but it was still hard to _accept_.

And Sakura had realized that she had reached her limit point (she had understood this when she had responded in an altered way to a young genin who had dropped a tray of surgical instruments during a surgery) but her conscience prevented her to take a day off. But her outbursts of anger had not gone unnoticed because that morning Tsunade had appeared in Gai’s room during his daily examination and had ordered her to leave the hospital for a few hours. Sakura had protested a little but the reality was that she wanted to stretch her legs and test the Byakugō a bit in something other than the medical field.

So she had obeyed and found herself in one of the training fields with Sai. Naruto, who was technically still hospitalized from his injuries but who was making life impossible for all the iryō-nins, had gone with them on the orders of the Hokage and, not being allowed to train, simply sat down in the sun to observe them and now he was sleeping blissfully.

When asked by Sai, Sakura had raised her eyes to him and then lowered them back to look at the point where her hands were emitting green chakra to heal a slight crack in a pair of ribs of her friend (ooops).

«No, it’s not unlimited. But the Byakugō allows me to store a large amount of it», she explained as she tried to fix the damage without causing pain.

«And how long have you been storing chakra?»

«Mmm… About three years. I started a few months after Tsunade-sama accepted me as an apprentice».

«It must not have been easy…»

Sakura smiled faintly at the memory of the failures she had faced during that time, of all the times she had come home exhausted and without even a drop of chakra in her body, of when she had decided that she would master the distinctive technique of her shishō, whatever what cost. She remembered how much it had hurt her the first time she had lost a patient because she hadn’t have enough chakra, or the time on a mission when she could barely keep a teammate alive for the same reason. Those episodes had been the decisive push to convince her to work on the Byakugō despite a part of her telling her that if Shizune-senpai hadn’t been able to master that technique in twenty years of apprenticeship alongside Tsunade, she had no hope.

Yet there she was, with the Byakugō’s seal glinting on her forehead. Every now and then, when she walked through the streets of the Village under reconstruction, or when she was bending over some patient, or when she drank a coffee in the iryō-nins’ room, she was surprised to see some shinobi staring at the seal with wondered eyes and it amazed her even more when wonder was accompanied by admiration. Often on those occasions she found herself blushing and that part of her that had remained the child terrified and bullied by the other kids suggested that she hide from their eyes.

But Sakura was no longer that little girl so she straightened her back and walked proud, proud of where she had arrived, proud of the goals she had reached, proud of her big forehead on which now stood the symbol of her power.


	10. Prove to them you Got the Moves

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DATE: Saturday, 2nd January 1681  
> TITLE: Better When I’m Dancing - Meghan Trainor
> 
> Relationships: Haruno Sakura & Yamanaka Ino, Haruno Sakura & Uzumaki Naruto  
> Characters: Haruno Sakura, Yamanaka Ino, Uzumaki Naruto, Original Male Character  
> Additional Tags: Sakura Month 2021. Day 10: "Who are you talking to?"

«Hey, babe, would you like to polish my kunai?»

Sakura raised an eyebrow and, with all the calm she managed to accumulate, she turned to the man who had just placed his hand on her thigh… _very high_ on her thigh.

She was at the Rusty Kunai with Ino and Naruto and had already drunk a lot… but definitely not enough to allow a stranger to intimately touch her _without permission_.

«Who are you talking to?» she asked him in a cold tone and the man immediately removed his hand, his face suddenly very pale.

«It was just a question», he muttered before walking away into the crowd.

She hated that kind of men, those who treated women like objects but who, if one of them responded in kind, ran away with their tails between their legs: slimy and cowardly.

«You’ll never fuck if you look at men that way», Ino teased her as she sipped her drink.

«I’d rather put on a chastity belt than give it to an idiot like hers», she retorted, gulping down her beer and signalling the waiter to bring her something stronger.

«Sakura-chan is right», Naruto muttered. «I have no idea how you girls manage to not kill them all».

Sakura held back a laugh at the memory of that time Naruto showed up for an evening with the Oiroke no jutsu active. On that occasion, Sakura had to save him from a couple of civilians with slightly too long hands. She occasionally reflected on the fact that this was an experience that would be good for many men.

She was about to savour her magnificent drink, black as her soul, when a movement to her right distracted her.

It was a man, probably in his thirties, shoulder length wavy dark hair. He was obviously a civilian but he had the physique of someone who trains daily. He had dark eyes but she could not have said what colour because his pupils were very dilated, partly because of the low light of the room and partly because the man was obviously _terribly_ drunk.

«Hello ever’one», he greeted them all, but his eyes were fixed on Sakura. «I was wonderin’ if you wanted to donce… I mean, dance. Yeah, I mean, with me».

«Which of us?» Naruto asked, a blond eyebrow raised, blue eyes scanning the man as if he were trying to understand something.

«He’s talking to Sakura, you idiot», Ino added. «Can’t you see that he’s practically tearing her apart with his eyes? By the way, my boy, it’s not a nice thing to stare at a girl like that… especially if _I’m_ around».

He blushed furiously… which was extraordinary since his cheeks were already quite red.

«Err. If yer Sakura», he began, pointing to her, «then yes, I was talkin’ to Sakura… -san. So, do you like‘t? I mean, to dance with me».

Sakura didn’t have time to really consider the offer because suddenly next to the man appeared a second one who was a familiar face to Sakura. He was in fact one of the doctors of the clinic for civilians. She had met him during his apprenticeship with Tsunade-shishō and it still happened that they crossed paths when Sakura had to drop by the clinic to help out with some particularly difficult operations.

«Come away, you idiot jerk», he growled, as he grabbed his arm and yanked him away. «Excuse him, Sakura-sama, he… he’s terribly drunk».

«Don’ be a spoilsport», muttered the other. «I just wanna dance with her», he added, freeing himself from his grip… but the movement was a little too abrupt, or he was really too drunk, because the man lost his balance and in an instant he fell to the ground, the wild eyes of someone who had no idea how he ended up with his ass on the sticky floor of the club.

Distractedly Sakura heard her two friends burst into laughter that was not at all flattering but she jumped off the stool she was perched on and crouched on the ground next to the man who was scrutinizing her with wide eyes and dilated pupils. Sakura placed a hand on the side of his head and infused him with a little bit of chakra to slightly relieve his hangover.

Sakura saw perfectly when he returned sufficiently lucid because something passed in his eyes and the surprised expression on his face gave way to one of conscious embarrassment.

«Uh».

Sakura smiled and stood up, grabbing him by the arm and carrying him with her effortlessly, releasing her grip only when she was sure he was firmly on his legs.

«Maybe it’s better if you take him home», she suggested to the other man.

«Yes, Sakura-sama», he replied and, taking his friend by the waist, he went away.

«Hey!» Sakura suddenly called them and they both turned immediately. Shit. «Just a dance», she conceded as she tried not to blush.

The shining smile on the man’s face repaid Ino’s giggles.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Since Rusty Kunai is featured in pretty much every fanfiction I've read, I thought why not. Also I'm terrible at inventing names, both of people and places, and I've already used all my inventivness to choose the name of a restaurant where a few things will happen, so... Rusty Kunai.


	11. I Am the Candyman

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sakura entrusts her two children to Naruto for an afternoon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DATE: Thursday, 11th August 1693  
> TITLE: Lollipop (Candyman) - Aqua
> 
> Relationships: Haruno Sakura & Uzumaki Naruto, Uzumaki Naruto & Hatake Megumi (OC), Uzumaki Naruto & Hatake Aki (OC), Haruno Sakura / Hatake Kakashi  
> Characters: Haruno Sakura, Uzumaki Naruto, Hatake Megumi (OC), Hatake Aki (OC)  
> Additional Tags: Sakura Month 2021. Day 11: Candy Floss, Naruto makes candy floss with Rasengan, yeah I don't know why, I wasn’t drunk I swear

Sakura was slightly worried.

That afternoon she had been called to the hospital for an emergency surgery on some ANBUs and since Kakashi was on a diplomatic mission to Suna with Gai and their other regular babysitters were somehow busy or out of the Village, Sakura had left her five-years-old daughter and three-year-old son in Naruto cares. And that wasn’t why she was worried, really: Naruto was wonderful with her children and Megumi and Aki loved him. The Hokage had also kept her informed all afternoon about their movements and activities: first they had stayed in the office to work (aka: painting) and after a couple of hours Naruto had brought the children to the festival through the streets of the Village.

And that was what worried her. She knew her children and she knew Naruto and she knew that leaving them free to roam unsupervised in a matsuri was an insured disaster. And indeed there was no way to find them. What the hell, it was the Hokage and two three-foot-tall children, how was it possible that no one knew where they were?

In the end Sakura decided that there were only two places they could have gone, her house or Naruto’s house, and she decided to try both.

When she walked through the front door of her house, Sakura knew she had found them… and immediately knew that something was wrong. Leaving her sandals badly in the genkan, the woman hurried to the kitchen following a strange smell, like something burned, and she stopped at the door.

Her two children were standing on the peninsula stools, both held steady by Naruto behind them, both with wooden sticks in their hands that fluttered in the air as they hopped decidedly overexcited. The worrying thing, however, were the three Naruto clones next to the oven, one with a Rasengan swirling on his hand, the second blowing fire into it and the other dropping a pink powder on it.

«What’s going on in here?!» she asked in a very loud voice and instantly six pairs of wide eyes stared at her.

«Err… Sakura-chan… You’re back early», Naruto stammered.

«Yeah, and you forgot to tell me you weren’t at the matsuri anymore», she scolded, crossing her arms over her chest.

«Err…»

«Again, what’s going on here?» she repeated as she took a couple of steps forward. «Why did you create _a Rasengan in my kitchen_?»

«Err…»

«Kāchan, kāchan!» Megumi intervened as she jumped off the stool gracefully and walked towards her in a swirl of pink. «Naruto-ojiji is making candy floss for us!» she exclaimed excitedly, grabbing her hand and dragging her towards the island.

«He what?»

«Aki-chan wanted candy floss but it was finished and Naruto-ojiji said we could do it ourselves», her daughter continued, pointing excitedly at the three clones who had petrified since her arrival. Well, that Rasengan made sense, at least. It remained a tremendously _stupid_ thing to do indoors, but it made sense.

«Ah is that so?»

«Yes, okāsan. Are you angry?» Aki intervened, green eyes wide open.

Ah, damn, that kid was able to make her do anything.

«It depends», she began slowly, her voice still menacing. «I hope you have enough sugar to make me one too».

The children jumped for joy and Naruto smiled radiantly.

«Obviously, Sakura-chan».

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One of the things I hate about Boruto is the fact that the kids don't seem to be familiar with each other. That is, apart from the Ino-Shika-Cho, the other children practically only know each other for the Academy. I refuse to accept that Boruto, Himawari and Sarada did not grow up practically as siblings, same for Sarada with Inojin and so on.


End file.
